Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1268420
11 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 12 JULY 2020 OPINION Andrew Azzopardi, Stephanie Fabri, George Vital Zammit No longer tenable THE importance of leadership and good gov- ernance can never be overstated. This is even more so in challenging times as the COV- ID-19 experience has shown us. With strong leadership and combined efforts of different stakeholders, Malta has managed to cope with a public health challenge extremely well espe- cially when compared to other countries. It is time that such leadership is demonstrat- ed in other key pressing challenges that Malta is currently facing. We note with concern the most recent dis- coveries that have emerged in Court proceed- ings or as a result of investigative journalism. The scope and breadth of these discoveries is already staggering as is, and yet reasonable chances exist that the malaise we are viewing might have taken root much more deeply than we would have imagined. From institutions crippled by inaction, to a political system that is too close to the business sector, even after certain facts came to light, there is no other way to call this but a general malaise of the po- litical system. Resisting the call to fall into petty gossip and engaging in one-upmanship about who knows more about what, we call on the State and the people who live in Malta, to take a step back and look at the bigger picture. This disease and rot present today, did not appear overnight, and is not merely the product of our current governance, but is instead the product of a wil- ful neglect and closing a blind eye to what is happening around us due to a potent mix of apathy, greed and self-interest brought about by an utter contempt for the Common Good. We cannot and should not tolerate corrup- tion or trading in influence. Political parties should exist to compete on the best policies for the future of the country which is only a means to an end; that of im- proving our quality of life and social wellbeing. A thriving economy is one that should take care of its most vulnerable and requires lawful adherence and that those with the most power are held to account. We have a right to demand transparency, honesty and accountability from our elected representatives. We need to see a political class that truly upholds the values of democracy and under- stands that power is not theirs by right but is merely delegated to them by citizens. We need a political class that is mature, hum- ble and loyal to the country and who truly live to their oath of office. It is time that we truly start looking at a re- form and overhaul of our current political system which has shown its fragility and weak- nesses. This applies to parties in government and in opposition. What we have seen in recent years is a sad spectacle where the benchmark of expecta- tions kept getting lower and lower. The only thing that mattered it seems, is political sur- vival. We assisted towards the creation of al- ternative realities, where politicians painted pictures distant from the truth. A small democracy like ours requires an even stronger opposition and the country cannot permit to have an opposition that is weak, frag- ile and inherently broken. Political leadership needs to assume its responsibility not to party constituents but to the broader Maltese popu- lation and society. Failure to do so is a threat to our democratic foundations and values. Political power is essentially a responsibility to transform what we already have into some- thing better for the good of the community. Let us start holding our politicians to ac- count, be they in government or not. Let us start demanding that political parties do not succumb to trading of influence. Let us change our mediocre acceptance of what is and insist on acknowledging we have a problem. Let us start charting our path by pushing the envelope so that the mess we find ourselves in will be overcome. We need strong leadership, which is princi- pled, honourable and righteous. We deserve better. Prof. Andrew Azzopardi, Dean, Faculty for Social Wellbeing Dr Stephanie Fabri, Lecturer, Faculty of Economics, Management & Accountancy Dr George Vital Zammit, Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Economics, Management & Accountancy University of Malta point] the member of the House who, in the judgment of the Pres- ident, commands the support of the largest single group of mem- bers of the House in opposition to the Government who are pre- pared to support one leader." Unsurprisingly, both the pro- and anti-Delia factions now ar- gue that one or the other of these clauses somehow 'validates' their own claims to the PN throne. And for all I understand about Consti- tutional matters… either of them could just as easily be right. At the same time, however… there is a level at which it doesn't even really matter that much. For the same two Constitutional clauses also spell out an entire- ly different course of action that the rebels could have taken: one which would have ended this con- troversy before it even began. If their intention really was to re- place Adrian Delia as Opposition leader, and thus regain all the le- gitimacy required to keep up the fight for good governance, rule of law, and all that… … well, those 17 MPs could eas- ily have achieved all of that, and more, simply by resigning from the PN, retaining their seats in Parliament, and declaring them- selves a new political formation under the leadership of Therese Commodini Cachia. That way, all the provisos of both 90 (a) and (b) would in- stantly have been met. The new party would have enjoyed an au- tomatic majority among the com- bined Opposition parties… so the President wouldn't have had any problems appointing Commod- ini Cachia as Opposition leader… and besides: there wouldn't even be any need to separate the roles of Opposition and Party Leader, either. Under those circumstances, Therese Commodini Cachia would have been both at the same time: just like the good old days. More to the point: this new po- litical formation would also have stood a much better chance of actually reinventing itself as a se- rious, credible political alterna- tive government… being unen- cumbered by either Adrian Delia himself, or any of the baggage that inevitably comes with the PN's chequered 125-year political his- tory. But for that to happen in prac- tice – for it still can; and the pos- sibility will remain open in future, too - those 17 PN rebels would need to be motivated by more than just a knee-jerk, guns-blaz- ing determination to simply de- stroy their political opponents at all costs. They would also need the one thing they have never given any indication of actually possessing, at any point in these past three years: a political vision of their own. Political parties should exist to compete on the best policies for the future of the country which is only a means to an end; that of improving our quality of life and social wellbeing